Sunday we went over to Casa Flor to see our girl and her babies only to find that she was leaving and coming back at will. We were bringing her some food, scrambled eggs with tiny bits of smoked salmon. She was sitting outside of the gate and when she saw us she went crazy jumping all around us. We let her inside the compound, no one else was there. It appears that she was able to jump off the deck into the sand but had not yet figured out how to get back inside. She ate my food very quickly and drank water once we had filled the containers ( they were empty ). She then went up to see her babies. Her ability to do stairs had improved.

I had forgotten my camera at Linda and Kevin’s the night prior. However we did not have much time to take photos as it ended up being an active day.

We left her feeding the pups and went for our walk. Shortly after getting back to the RV, Alberto, the waiter from the restaurant, came to tell us that the owner was actively trying to catch our girl and to take her away and kill her. We begged him to please give us two days as it was the weekend and we would only be able to check with the shelters the next day which was Monday. Could he please beg with his boss on our behalf. So I went back to Casa Flor and finally someone was there. I explained to them that Princess was in danger of being killed and to please keep her close. She is a beach dog and scraps from the restaurant tables appeal to her. I could tell that she was hungry yet again. I noted that the kibble was not being eaten and the cans of fish I had left had not been opened. Turns out that only one person in the complex had a can opener. So we got a can of tuna opened and I mixed it with my finger ( don’t ask ) and put it down and she ate 3/4 of a large bowl. Once we refilled her water dish I knew that she would not be going out again that evening.

Monday we had the RV tech coming to do work that we requested way back last August. He was to arrive at 10AM. At 11:30AM we got a text that the shelter ( which is no kill ) had only one space left and we had to get the dog there by 2PM or later in the day between 4 and 7 PM. So we planned to pick up the Mom and her kids at 1PM. The RV tech never arrived until 12:15. We explained the situation and left him to do his thing.

So the pups were there ready to be loaded into the car but Princess was gone. She had gone on a walkabout. It was too late to try and find her and get to Mazatlan by 2PM, so we said we would see about doing this later in the afternoon.

Back at the RV we were about to be told that our inverter was on its last breathe. If it dies we would lose all power and there was no way to bypass the inverter. So we would lose all the food in our fridge and have no power at all.

Colin got on the phone to try and find a new circuit board. Eric was going to check on it the next day. It has been ordered but it is at least a 10 day process to get it through Mexican customs, etc. Meanwhile we are supposed to be leaving on a road trip on Monday. Should we stay to keep an eye on our power situation. We have decided to have a fellow RVer come in twice per day to check if we still have power. If the inverter totally dies than a battery booster will have to be attached to our batteries in order to provide some power to the RV. So we will leave as planned. At this point Eric decided to use his compressor and blow out the inverter in case dust was the cause of the problem. Well something went wrong and the RV got full of dust! Meanwhile the clock was ticking to get the dogs to the shelter. Colin could not leave at this point. We tried to get someone else to take them in, no go. Now we were on the phone to someone in San Diego to be sure that the inverter part Colin had found was the correct one for our RV. Back and forth. To say that we were stressed was an understatement. Finally we decided that Colin would go with Julie from Casa Flor to take the dogs in and he left at 5PM. If we didn’t get them there by 7PM we might miss the only empty slot in the shelter. I was to stay behind with Eric. My heart sank when Colin left. I was unable to say adios to my girl.

The puppies in the same bin that they had arrived in at Casa Flor. In the two days there I think they have gotten fatter. Adios pups.

I was crying missing my girl so I headed out to the road behind the RV park as I knew Colin would have to come back this way before heading to Mazatlan. He stopped and I opened the back door to hug her and say goodbye. Her eyes were glazed and she was stressed. She did not appear to recognize me. Colin later told me that she did not want to leave the balcony, her second home with the pups. He had to carry her down the stairs and into the car. I cried saying goodbye to her as I am crying now as I type this.

I got to watch the sunset but my heart was heavy.

Eric kept working. Here he is measuring something for the radiator.

My mind was on Colin and the dogs.

Colin had to carry Princess out of the car and into the shelter. She did walk in the cage to follow her babies. She is sniffing the kibble in the cage. She will never ever run free on the beach again and is destined to only have kibble as food. If it were me I would feel that I was in jail.

The last photo Colin took as he left. She was feeding her pups but she looks oh so very very sad.

Thank you for your kind comments. The shelter is the same one that Colin and I had taken the things that had belonged to our girls last March. Click here for that post. It is a no kill shelter and they will keep her there for years if need be. They do ask for a donation when you bring a dog in. I was able to raise 2500 pesos/133.00USD/165.00CAD, including our own donation and those of RVers and friends within 2 days and that will be enough to spay Princess when the time is right for that. Meanwhile all of them will be checked by a vet and treated as necessary including deworming and shots. Princess will also receive calcium and vitamins. When the pups are adopted the new owner must pay to have the puppy spayed. The shelter takes the pup to a vet and the new owner picks the puppy up at the vet, so they will all be spayed at some point.

Thank you to Geno from Ohio for commenting for the first time. I am unable to reply to each of your comments. This is a difficult time for me. I am torn but this is not the time for us to take on another dog. We are still mourning our girls, it is time for us to after 20 years of dog ownership to spread our wings and to travel.

Sad but happy she and her puppies are safe from being killed.. Hopefully they are all adopted very soon. Thanks for being a animal lover.. Peggy and I found and took in kittens on a very rainy day a few years ago.. We can only hope they spay and neuter more ..

You did the best that you could for that dog, don’t feel guilty for not taking a dog right now – it is not the right time or place for you guys to do so. Hopefully many happy families will be the recipients of these dogs and Princess will get spayed so she doesn’t have to go through it again.

Colin is just very lucky as it was dark and he was in the process of turning on our outdoor lights. He had to jump over it to avoid stepping on it. I couldn’t ask the shelter to send photos as they are so very busy, overworked in fact. Stay tuned for the trip details.